Chapter 21
Chapter 21
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: Mission 3
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Baek Moo-jin scanned Mak So-gwang from head to toe.
Mak So-gwang was in high spirits today. He had brought the West Light Branch under the Iron Blood Gang's control without even lifting a finger. Now, the matter would be settled once he swung his sword in front of Bong Yoo-hak and killed a North Heaven Alliance warrior.
'The West Light Branch is finished now...'
Mak So-gwang strode toward the young man eyeing him, then abruptly raised the sword gripped in his right hand and slashed at the neck of the seated Baek Moo-jin.
No one could have anticipated a sword swing without so much as an introduction. Mak So-gwang knew full well that ruthlessness like this was the most efficient way to deal with White Path folk.
By the time the shock rippled through the room, Mak So-gwang's blade was trembling faintly right by Baek Moo-jin's face.
"......"
Baek Moo-jin, whose head should have tumbled, stared at Mak So-gwang with a blank expression and spoke.
"You're Black Path."
Mak So-gwang's brazen swing and Baek Moo-jin's curt reply the instant he blocked it left a striking impression.
Mak So-gwang's eyes bulged as he saw his extended sword pinched between the young man's two fingers. While twisting desperately to wrench it free, he demanded Baek Moo-jin's identity.
"Who the hell are you?"
Baek Moo-jin replied in a rigid tone.
"You swing first and then ask who I am."
As Baek Moo-jin spoke, Mak So-gwang poured internal energy into his blade to yank it back.
"Huh?"
But it didn't budge an inch. In a panic, he channeled power into his left palm and thrust at Baek Moo-jin's forehead—a killing strike.
Yet Mak So-gwang's left palm halted in midair.
A sharp crackling followed as white frost surged from the sword tip in Baek Moo-jin's grasp, rippling like waves. Soon, an icy chill permeated Mak So-gwang's entire body.
A brief gasp escaped Mak So-gwang's lips.
"Hk!"
His right hand quivered uncontrollably, and his knees slammed into the floor. Despite the thud, he and Baek Moo-jin remained linked by that single blade.
Baek Moo-jin's gaze bored down at the kneeling man. Knowing the frigid energy he emitted would prevent any response, he turned to Bong Yoo-hak.
"Branch Chief Bong, who is this?"
Bong Yoo-hak, stunned by Baek Moo-jin's eerie martial art, answered without thinking.
"A man named Mak So-gwang."
Baek Moo-jin gave a slight shake of his head.
"What's his affiliation?"
"Iron... Iron Blood Gang."
Baek Moo-jin nodded, then addressed the now-shuddering Mak So-gwang.
"Mak So-gwang of the Iron Blood Gang—so this is how Black Path swordsmen strike."
With those words, Baek Moo-jin withdrew his energy. Mak So-gwang finally grunted "Kuhk," letting the sword clatter to the floor as he trembled like a man plunged into an iceberg, drenched in sweat.
He couldn't even rise, slipping straight into energy circulation from his seated pose. No choice—he had to. The chill coiling through his body was infiltrating his dantian. Fail to expel it, and severe internal injuries would demand years of bedrest.
Well aware of his plight, Baek Moo-jin eyed Mak So-gwang while continuing to Bong Yoo-hak.
"West Light Branch Chief, by the Alliance Leader's command, we'll escort him back to headquarters. Permission was given to sever his head if he resists. Report the matter of Mak So-gwang once you're at the Alliance."
The West Light Branch members turned as one to Bong Yoo-hak. He knew Mak So-gwang's prowess intimately. Yet Baek Moo-jin had handled him like a child—his skill level utterly beyond measure.
Bong Yoo-hak knew better than anyone: resisting alongside his branch against the Alliance's envoys meant no chance of victory.
He closed his eyes, face etched with despair.
"Jeong In-hyeok."
His deputy replied in a voice thick with gloom.
"Yes, Branch Chief."
"Send a letter to the Alliance first—report the Iron Blood Gang's reach into the West Light Branch and request reinforcements. I'll head there with the envoys."
Deputy Branch Chief Jeong In-hyeok responded with heavy sorrow.
"Come with us. I'll explain everything. Going alone means death."
At that moment, seeing Mak So-gwang partially dispel the cold, Baek Moo-jin extended a hand to seal his acupoints and said.
"The Deputy Branch Chief takes charge here. Note the evidence of Mak So-gwang's intimidation by force. As for the West Light Branch..."
Baek Moo-jin surveyed the room before concluding.
"Don't let this escalate further."
No one dared reply to Baek Moo-jin, nor attempt anything foolish. A few words in the hall, and the crisis dissolved completely.
Mak So-gwang's pallid face still puffed white breaths; frost clung even to the moisture around his brows and eyes.
Baek Moo-jin stared silently before finally addressing him.
"Mak So-gwang, was it? One question."
Mak So-gwang glared with fiery eyes, prompting Baek Moo-jin to continue.
"What possessed you to swing your sword on sight?"
Mak So-gwang laughed, heedless of his misery.
"Hahaha..."
The laugh mocked the question's obviousness, laced with bitter self-mockery at defeat by a jianghu greenhorn blind to its brutal norms.
Yet hearing it, Baek Moo-jin grasped Black Path logic in an instant. He nodded.
"Good answer."
Mak So-gwang spat at the floor.
2.
In the hall, Bong Yoo-hak and the bound, kneeling Mak So-gwang remained. The rest of the branch had been dismissed. Baek Moo-jin turned to Seo Moon-geuk.
"Brother Seo Moon."
"Hm?"
Seo Moon-geuk replied, though his gut twisted. Roughly gauging the energy Baek Moo-jin used on Mak So-gwang, he'd held back immensely even against him.
Baek Moo-jin spoke as if seeking counsel.
"This Mak So-gwang—what rank in the Iron Blood Gang, do you reckon?"
Seo Moon-geuk fanned himself, eyeing Mak So-gwang.
"Mid-tier cadre, I'd say. Why?"
"Worried about the Iron Blood Gang. Won't they raid the West Light Branch once they hear, while we're gone?"
"What? Why fret over that?"
"Why not?"
"They'll chase us to rescue him. Hahaha... Ah, that'd spell trouble. Best leave now—or kill him here. Branch members can haul the corpse far off or fake a disappearance."
At "kill," Mak So-gwang's shut eyes flew open.
Baek Moo-jin countered.
"Only option?"
"The finest, yes."
Seo Moon-geuk approached the bound man.
"W-Wait!"
Just as Mak So-gwang stammered, Seo Moon-geuk's iron rib cracked down on his skull. A dull thunk—he pitched forward, lifeless. And right into his own spit.
Baek Moo-jin eyed the corpse's back with icy detachment. Seo Moon-geuk's chill words followed.
"Brother Baek, best kill the Branch Chief too."
Seo Moon-geuk sought assent, but Baek Moo-jin shook his head. His gaze flicked briefly to the hall's interior before he spoke.
"Can't do that."
Seo Moon-geuk's eyes traced the same path.
"Why? No Mak So-gwang means a treacherous return. Pursuit hits, and we can't shield the Branch Chief."
"Still no."
"Reason?"
Seo Moon-geuk asked evenly, purely curious.
"He surrendered to escort without fuss. Guilty, yes—but his branch warriors follow him. Kill him, and the whole West Light Branch flips to Iron Blood Gang. Even absent that, we mustn't. Take him to the Alliance, confess, let regulations judge. Bribery alone; Branch Chief reports Mak So-gwang flexibly."
Bong Yoo-hak's heart had plummeted until Seo Moon-geuk slew Mak So-gwang out of nowhere; now Baek Moo-jin's words brought relief. He pleaded earnestly, remorse deep.
"I'll go confess my sins. Per Mak So-gwang, Iron Blood Gang preps to strike North Heaven Alliance soon—not just me, but destabilize branches first. Full report, full punishment. Spare me, sirs."
Baek Moo-jin nodded.
In a sense, Baek Moo-jin and Seo Moon-geuk adroitly synced to tidy the mess. Both sensed eavesdroppers within the hall. Kill Bong Yoo-hak here, and the branch turns en masse—as Baek Moo-jin noted.
Worst: the entire West Light Branch charging, forcing Baek Moo-jin to slaughter them.
He wanted no such brutality.
Baek Moo-jin rose, snapped Bong Yoo-hak's thick ropes with thumb and forefinger.
"No bindings. Delay to Alliance endangers the whole branch—join us at full pace, Branch Chief. I trust no rashness."
Bong Yoo-hak, reaffirming Baek Moo-jin's prowess, nodded.
"Trust me. That's survival for me and West Light Branch."
"Good. Brother Seo Moon, let's move."
Seo Moon-geuk nodded, smiling knowingly at Baek Moo-jin.
'Getting the hang of it.'
Baek Moo-jin sensed the unspoken thought, returning a faint smile.
3.
Baek Moo-jin and Seo Moon-geuk departed West Light Branch, bound for North Heaven Alliance, each immersed in reflection. Bong Yoo-hak trailed in grim silence—no flight in mind. Baek Moo-jin's arts made escape futile regardless.
Today, Baek Moo-jin glimpsed Black Path tactics. Per the Branch Chief, Mak So-gwang's wasn't blind force but sly isolation plots.
'Black Path...'
Mak So-gwang's instant sword-draw etched deep.
He'd thought North Heaven Alliance and Black Path alike—all jianghu curs. Direct clash proved otherwise.
Seo Moon-geuk, conversely, admired Baek Moo-jin: youthfully adept. Questions aplenty, yet pivotal calls firm with rationale.
And jianghu's sine qua non... superior martial arts.
Baek Moo-jin exceeded expectations.
'Enviable bastard.'
Seo Moon-geuk knew Mak So-gwang no weakling. Yet one energy pulse left him a cripple.
Suddenly eyeing Baek Moo-jin, a calm query came.
"Brother Seo Moon, not weary?"
Seo Moon-geuk grinned wide.
"Not a bit!"
Baek Moo-jin, noting the forced cheer, held his tongue—likely mulling martial arts.
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